Linda Bird couldn’t believe it when agents from the U.S. Border patrol at the crossing between Manitoba and Minnesota told her she had illegal contraband in her car – and that she faced the possibility of a $300 fine.
The unlawful property in question: a Kinder Surprise egg she had bought as a gift.
Bird, a 48-year-old social-work student at the University of Manitoba, and her two sons, were caught up in a random search at the border.
The family was driving to Ontario to visit her two daughters and going through the United States, which is a shorter drive, Bird said.
The incident happened in early December. The family was asked for identification and then told to get out of the car and wait inside the U.S. Border patrol offices.
After 20 minutes, the U.S. officers came back and showed Bird what they’d found: the Kinder Surprise egg. The egg is forbidden because the toy inside might be a choking hazard.
“They told us it was prohibited,” she said in an interview with the Star. Then they handed her a list of prohibited items that are not allowed in the United States which she took, escaping with just a warning.
“We kind of thought of it as more of a nuisance. We left. I didn’t think anything more about it.”
That is until last week when she got a seven-page letter from the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Agency. The letter asked her if she wanted the egg back or if she was going to abandon any rights to it.
“I was in disbelief,” she said. “It’s a two-dollar egg. Why make a big fuss over it? Just throw it in the garbage.”
If she doesn’t sign the letter, let U.S. Customs and Border officials know whether she wants the egg, and return it within five business days, she also could be liable for $250 in storage costs for the egg in the event of a legal challenge.
“I think it’s ridiculous,” she said of the time, money and energy spent on the case. “It’s unbelievable to do this – to send a seven-page letter over a Kinder Surprise egg.”
. 
